The Elven Cultivator

Training Grounds, Magic Area.

A hint of surprise flickered in Darian's eyes when he saw Anton appear at the entrance of the treehouse.

Ever since releasing the Dragon Yuan Potion, Anton had been living in seclusion, rarely appearing outside.

All the materials he needed for his potions were delivered to his residence, and the finished products were picked up by others.

The last time he had seen Anton was more than three months ago.

'Could he have a new, improved potion?'

A flicker of anticipation had just sparked within Darian, only to be extinguished by Anton's next words.

"Teacher, I'd like to borrow some books related to Alchemy."

"Alchemy?" Forgetting his disappointment, Darian asked in surprise, "Why the sudden interest in borrowing books on Alchemy?"

"I've developed an interest in it and wanted to learn more," Anton said plainly.

Darian fell silent for a moment, looking like he wanted to say something but held his tongue.

'It wasn't unheard of for a Caster to study two disciplines at once,' he thought, 'but in his view, since Anton possessed such a stunning, superhuman talent for potioneering, he should focus solely on that path.'

'Instead of being distracted and scattering his energy into other fields.'

'Biting off more than one can chew—it was a truth proven by the blood and tears of countless Casters.'

'But times had changed. Even though Anton was just a young Elf who hadn't come of age, his prestige and status within the Clan had long surpassed his own.'

'Even he couldn't easily object to Anton's reasonable request.'

After hesitating, Darian finally walked to the bookshelf against the wall and took down a stack of leather-covered tomes.

"These are all introductory books on Alchemy. If there's anything you don't understand after studying them, you can come find me."

Although he didn't approve of Anton's actions, Darian still did his best to offer help.

"I'm not skilled in Alchemy myself, but there are Casters in the Clan who specialize in it. I can introduce you."

"Thank you, Teacher."

Anton readily agreed. As he did, his gaze fell upon a long oak table to the side, where a map immediately caught his eye.

It was a slightly yellowed map with curled edges and mottled ink. Deep brown lines outlined rolling mountains and winding rivers, while dense contour lines, like the rings of a tree, encircled the familiar shape of a forest at its center.

The Silver Moon Forest.

North of the forest, countless fine arrows were drawn, like a flock of migratory birds with a clear destination, all pointing toward an area marked with a lizard skull.

Noticing Anton's gaze, Darian explained, "That's the territory of the Molten Spike Tribe."

The Molten Spike Tribe was the Lizard-man tribe that occupied the Northern Wilderness, north of the Silver Moon Forest.

"Speaking of which," Anton asked, "Teacher Darian, are the Clan's hunts going well?"

He had been busy with his training for the past few years and hadn't paid much attention to the outside world. He'd only heard Romance mention the hunts in passing, but he was completely unaware of the details.

"Thanks to your Muscle Regeneration and Stamina Recovery Potions, casualties among the guards have been greatly reduced. Overall, the hunts have been going smoothly."

Darian came to the table, his finger tracing over the map and stopping below the lizard skull symbol.

"The Lizard-men of the Molten Spike Tribe are individually much weaker than the Clan's Warriors, but their population far exceeds our own."

"The Molten Spike Tribe has a population of at least twenty thousand, with adult Lizard-men making up about half of that."

"We'd have no chance of winning a direct assault on the Molten Spike Tribe. Fortunately, our targets are the Lizard-man hunting parties that venture out to forage. We just need to capture a few of those each year to make up for our shortage of captives."

Anton's eyes shifted slightly.

The Silver Moon Clan had a population of less than two thousand, all told—only about a tenth of the Molten Spike Tribe.

'Such a massive disparity in numbers couldn't be overcome by a slight advantage in individual strength.'

'No wonder the Clan has always been on the defensive, never taking the initiative to attack the Molten Spike Tribe.'

'Once they left the Silver Moon Forest and lost their home-field advantage, the Silver Moon Clan might really be no match for the Molten Spike Tribe.'

Perhaps feeling he was making their enemy sound too formidable, Darian quickly added, "But this is only temporary. With the Dragon Yuan Potion you invented, the Clan's overall strength will see a qualitative leap within one or two hundred years at most. By then, the Molten Spike Tribe will certainly be no match for us."

Anton smiled and nodded, not saying anything.

'If they really waited one or two hundred years, he'd probably already be in the mid-to-late stages of Foundation Establishment.'

'He probably wouldn't even need the Clan. He could wipe out the Molten Spike Tribe all by himself.'

"By the way, there's something you don't know yet."

Darian mentioned casually, as if he'd just remembered something.

"Next month, Eleanor will be challenging the Windwhisperer Trial."

Anton was taken aback for a moment. "I thought Eleanor still had another ten years until she comes of age?"

"That's correct," Darian nodded. "But Eleanor requested to challenge the trial early, and the Elder Council approved."

Seeing Anton's stunned expression, he explained with a smile, "The Clan has never had a written rule stipulating the age for challenging the Windwhisperer Trial. Holding it on the day of the coming-of-age ceremony was merely a long-standing tradition."

'You can do that?'

Anton was rendered speechless.

'If I'd known, I would have applied twenty years ago!'

'I wasted twenty years waiting for nothing.'

After a moment of silent complaint, Anton immediately said, "Teacher, I want to take the Windwhisperer Trial early, too."

Darian seemed to have anticipated Anton's reaction. He wasn't surprised at all, and simply smiled. "Alright. I'll submit your request to the Elder Council so you can take the trial with Eleanor next month."

...

Perhaps it was due to his fame, but the news of Anton taking the Windwhisperer Trial spread even faster than he'd anticipated.

He had no sooner returned to his treehouse than Romance showed up at his door.

"You're taking the Windwhisperer Trial next month?"

Romance demanded the moment she burst through the door.

Anton nodded slightly. "That's right."

Romance immediately declared, "Then I'm taking it too."

Anton looked the girl up and down, surprised. "You broke through to the Silver Tier?"

"Of course! Who do you take me for?"

Romance puffed out her chest proudly, but then she seemed to recall something. Her shoulders slumped a little, and she scratched the back of her head with a grin. "Actually, it's all thanks to your potions and combat techniques that I improved so fast."

Only after she started training with them did Romance realize that the two combat techniques Anton had given her were a perfect match for her fighting style.

They had significantly boosted her practical combat abilities.

On top of that, Anton had secretly given her an extra dose of the Dragon Yuan Potion.

Romance was already more talented than most. Coupled with a double dose of the Dragon Yuan Potion, the growth of her Magic Power was explosive, allowing her to break through to the Silver Tier before coming of age.

"In that case, let's take it together."

Learning that Romance had already advanced to the Silver Tier, Anton naturally had no objections.

"Okay, I'll go apply with my mentor right now."

With that, Romance dashed off as impetuously as she had arrived.

Watching Romance's figure disappear through the doorway, Anton couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle. He then turned and walked into his meditation chamber to begin his training.

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